Students sued, not attackers

08 Aug,2018

Dhaka, BDchronicle:

Leaving out the alleged ruling party men involved in attacks on road safety demonstrators and journalists, police have made students accused in cases filed over the last few days' violence in the capital.

The complainants in all the 29 cases filed with 16 police stations mentioned that the attackers were unknown students, many of whom were in school and college uniforms.

The case documents also state that some of the attackers were unidentified youths believed to be the infiltrators into the student movement sparked by the killing of two of their peers in a road crash on July 29.

This correspondent went through some of the case statements and talked to police officials in this regard.

Asked why they did not sue anyone belonging to the Awami League or its front organisations, a senior official of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, wishing anonymity, said, “Does any officer has the guts to file a case against ruling party activists unless a political decision comes to that end?”

Twenty-seven cases have been filed against several thousand unidentified students and youths for assaulting police, damaging government property and obstructing law enforcers from discharging duties.

Two other cases were filed by an AL leader for attacking the party president's office in Dhanmondi.

Alleged pro-AL men aided by police had pounced on demonstrators, prompting students to turn violent in some places including Jhigatola, Dhanmondi, Science Lab intersection, Uttara and Mirpur.

Many of them were in helmets and some carrying machetes. Some others were firing gunshots during running battles with the students.

22 STUDENTS REMANDED

A Dhaka court yesterday placed 22 private university students on a two-day remand in two separate cases filed over vandalism and attacks on police.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Abdullah Al Masud gave the order after officials of Badda and Bhatara police stations produced the arrestees before the court with seven days' remand prayer.

The arrestees are students of East West University, North South University, South East University and Brac University.

Their lawyers said in the court that the detainees were tortured in police custody. Some of the students were arrested while they were returning home after classes.